Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Saturday that Tehran must take full responsibility for downing Ukrainian International Airlines Flight PS752 and killing all 176 passengers and crew on board, including 57 Canadians.
Trudeau said he is both “outraged” and “furious” over the crash, and expects full co-operation from Iranian authorities in investigating the circumstances that led to the incident.
“We need full clarity on how such a horrific tragedy could have occurred,” Trudeau said at a press conference on Saturday. “Families are seeking justice and accountability and they deserve closure.”
The plane crashed Wednesday just minutes after it took off from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Airport, and only hours after Iran launched a ballistic missile strike on two military bases housing U.S. and Canadian troops.
Rouhani said Saturday that an investigation by the Iranian military found that the missiles that caused the downing of the plane were fired due to “human error.”
The Islamic Republic of Iran deeply regrets this disastrous mistake.<br><br>My thoughts and prayers go to all the mourning families. I offer my sincerest condolences. <a href=”https://t.co/4dkePxupzm”>https://t.co/4dkePxupzm</a>
—@HassanRouhani
Trudeau said Iran’s admission was an important step in providing answers for families, but that more must be done.
“A full and complete investigation must be conducted,” Trudeau said.
In their conversation, Rouhani promised further investigation into the circumstances surrounding the plane crash.
“Iran welcomes any international co-operation in the framework of international regulations to shed more light on the incident,” Rouhani said, according to state news agency IRNA.
The phone call marks what appears to be the first time Canadian and Iranian heads of government have spoken in years, and underscores the gravity of the diplomatic crisis that has emerged in the days since the UIA Flight PS752 went down.
Canada and Iran cut diplomatic ties in 2012 when then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper expelled all Iranian diplomats from the country.
Visas for Canadian officials
Trudeau said Iran had approved visas for three members of Canada’s Rapid Deployment Team, who are expected to arrive in Iran at 4 p.m. ET to provide consular support to Canadians whose family members were killed in the flight.
Seven other consular officials and two investigators from the Transportation Safety Board are currently in Ankara, Turkey, and are waiting for visas.
Trudeau said he expects more visas to be granted in the coming days.
The admission from the Iranian government marks a significant reversal from the Iranians. On Thursday, an official with the country’s Civil Aviation Organization was quoted as saying it was “impossible” that a missile hit the Ukranian plane in response to Trudeau saying that intelligence indicated the plane was shot down by an Iranian missile.
